The invention generally relates to a grommet assembly for granting access through a wall, particularly a wall panel of the type used in space divider systems. More specifically, the invention is directed toward a grommet assembly that may be field installed through a wall panel at substantially any location thereon.
The invention is further related to a method for field installing a grommet assembly through a wall panel from one side of the wall surface only. The invention is even more specifically directed toward providing a grommet assembly that is non-resiliently and non-frictionally insertable through an aperture in a wall and locked thereto without damage to the wall, particularly for use with wall panels having relatively fragile acoustical laminations where damage is difficult to avoid.
Grommets have been used in interior space divider panel systems for granting access through a wall to provide computer cables, data connection modules, electrical wires, plug outlets, jacks, and the like, to a workstation. For example, in numerous office environments, a multi-wall arrangement divides a space into individual, personal workstations that often require numerous electrical conduits, receptacles, computer connectors and telephone lines to be within easy reach at each of often differently configured work areas. It would greatly improve these wall systems by permitting the end user to field install a grommet assembly at a desired location and not be limited to the manufacturer's arrangement or be required to pay increased costs for special order panels. It also would be a benefit to allow an entire wall system to be installed first, leaving the placement of the grommets for later when exact needs and workstation functions are determined. This also permits the panel installation contractor to erect the divider system and field install the grommets at the user's own particular locations.
In connection with wall panel divider systems, sound attenuation layers are usually provided in most systems wherein a first layer is often a fibrous acoustical layer laminated to a backer layer that has a different density and thickness, for example, a honeycomb cardboard structure. Other types of wall panels using hard backer boards with a covering layer of fibrous material, or the like, also are widely used. Other wall panel configurations further include laminated layers over a gypsum board, or a double gypsum board layer interposed by an acoustical layer therebetween. A field installed grommet assembly usable in these various walls, with various thickness, would be desirable.
In some common space divider systems parallel sets of wall panels are capped at the top and set atop channels below, leaving a chamber therebetween for the placement of cables, wiring and the like. It would be desirable to provide for the field installation of a grommet assembly to access this interior chamber with installation only from one side of the panel system and yet securely lock the grommet assembly in place. The locking feature would be especially desirable if the end user intends to install a computer data module or wall jack, since it would be important that the grommet be firmly attached to the wall when plugs or connectors are connected and disconnected.
Many types of materials are used for wall panel divider systems, including wood veneers over plywood, fire resistant gypsum boards, solid wood panels, sound attenuation batts, mineral and glass fiber layers, and honeycombed cardboard backer laminates. Often the front faces of these panels are covered by a decorative surface which may comprise a woven fabric, vinyl coat, paper, plastic, acrylic, latex, and a variety of known aesthetically pleasing materials. Accordingly, it would be important to maintain the pleasant appearance of the wall adjacent a grommet assembly so that the assembly might be field installed without harming the surrounding surfaces. Cutting through a fabric layer, for example, could cause snagging or pulling adjacent the grommet aperture thereby misaligning the fabric pattern or symmetry which the interior wall panel surface was intended to have.
One type of prior art grommet device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,688,491 to Herrera et al. for use as a desk top grommet having an adjustable panel for selective access to equipment cabling and plugs. This type of device, while useful in its own way, does not address the problem of installing a grommet assembly through a wall panel from one side only and locking the assembly to the wall.
It has therefore been a goal in the interior wall construction industry to provide a means for cleanly cutting through multi-laminate panels having the different types of materials and surfaces often used. For example, a fiberglass panel may be covered by a woven fibrous layer that is held in tension at peripheral edges of the panel and backed by a honeycombed cardboard sound attenuation, backer support layer. It would be necessary for a field installation to cut through these three layers, given their different properties, without harming surrounding areas and at the same time making a neat accurate cut for the attachment of a grommet assembly through the resulting aperture. As a result, the present invention addresses this need by the provision of a self-locking grommet assembly that may be used in a method, including the cutting of aperture through multi-laminate boards as well as simple single layer uncovered panels, which allows for a non-resilient non-resistant insertion through the aperture to prevent damage to the wall. It is therefore an objective of the invention to provide a grommet assembly and installation method therefor.
When a grommet is to be installed on a woven fabric covered panel, it is critical to prevent darting, tearing, stretching or displacement adjacent the aperture during and following the cutting to prevent the decorative appearance from being destroyed. It is therefore also an aim of the invention and a long sought goal in the space divider systems arts to provide for the easy field installation of a grommet assembly on surface covered panels that must be protected.
Considering the wide variety of modern day office equipment, it is also important for a grommet assembly to have the capability of receiving complex computer data modules while also have the capability of being used simply as a pass-through for the feeding of cables and electric wiring to a work surface. It is also a related objective of the invention to allow for a grommet opening to include a snap closure fastener to seal the access opening when not in use.
It is concomitantly a goal of the invention to provide for a multi-component grommet assembly that achieves a smooth non-interfering and substantially frictionless insertion of a first component followed by a locking insertion of a second component for lockingly engaging to the first and at the same time lockingly engaging the first component to the wall. Accordingly, it is a goal of the invention to lock a grommet assembly after a first member has been safely extended fully through a wall panel thereby eliminating wall panel damage during the attaching or inserting step.